"Well, I like Reagan," said Trump after Hannity asked which
president he most admired. "I didn't like him on trade but other
than trade, I liked him very much and he was OK on trade. But not
great."

Trump also said Reagan was "not as strong on trade as I felt he
should have been" and that he "disagreed with him on some things,
primarily trade."

Reagan's record on trade is a bit mixed. In fact, Reagan first
proposed a free trade agreement between the US and Mexico during
his 1980 presidential run, signed off on a
US-Canada deal in 1988, and
inspired the idea of the North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA).

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In fact, in 1989, Reagan gave an impassioned defense of free
trade in a letter to Congress. From the letter (emphasis ours):

"It is the primary responsibility of governments to promote
sound and stable financial markets that encourage international
commerce and to reduce barriers to trade at home and abroad.
Reducing these barriers will allow markets, not
governments, to determine the goods that society
produces. Too often policies designed to preserve jobs
in one industry reduce competitiveness and employment in other
industries. A creative, competitive America is the answer to a
changing world, not trade wars that close doors, create greater
barriers, and destroy millions of jobs. We should always
remember: Protectionism is destructionism. America's jobs,
America's growth, America's future depend on trade-trade that is
free, open, and fair."

At the same time, however, Reagan also
imposed extreme tariffs against Japan - a massive trading
partner with the US. Reagan restricted the number of Japanese
cars that could be sold in the US, imposed a tariff on Japanese
motorcycles, and even instituted a 100% tariff on Japanese
electronics.

Trump has praised Reagan for his trade policies in the past,
citing the Japanese tariffs.

President Reagan deployed similar trade measures when motorcycle
and semiconductor imports threatened U.S. industry," said Trump
in a speech during the campaign. "I remember. His tariff on
Japanese motorcycles was 45 percent, and his tariff to shield
America's semiconductor industry was 100 percent, and that had a
big impact, folks. A big impact."